Coin dispenser



Dec. 23, 1941. A, ADLER 2,267,359

COIN DISPENSER Filed Jan. 5, 1941 '2 Sheets-Sheet 1 /7 v lNVENTOR ATTORNEY Dec. 23, 1941. A. ADLER COIN DISPENSER Filed Jan. 3, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 44,40; dQZi ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 23, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COIN DISPENSER Alphons Adler, Columbia, S. C. Application January 3, 1941, Serial No. 372,956

7 Claims.

This invention relates to a dispensing machine more specifically money or other articles delivery machine, and has for its principal object to provide a machine for facilitating the filling of pay envelopes with the proper amounts or for giving change.

Another object of this invention is to provide a machine which compared with the existing machines of this type, will be considerably simpler both in construction and operation and reduce the cost of manufacture and material thereof.

Another object of this invention is to eliminate key operated levers by using instead, dial disks, similar to those used for the dialing disks on telephone receivers.

Another object is to provide automatic means for the operation of said dial disks.

A still further object is to provide means whereby coins, bills or both will be automatically and selectively discharged from the containers and delivered into the pay envelopes or other collectors.

With these and other objects in view my invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described and defined in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings which constitute part of this specification and in which similar reference characters denote corresponding parts,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an automatic coin delivery machine constructed according to my invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical section thereof;

Figure 2a is a sectional detail of a push member in a dial, shown in operative position;

Figure 3 is a cross section on line 33 of Fig. 2 seen in the direction of the arrows; and

Figure 4 is a reduced horizontal section along line 44 of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings more in detail and first to the modification shown in Figures 1 to 4, the machine comprises a substantially rectangular casing H) in which are provided a number of containers ll, one being shown in Figure 2, which may be fixed to and project from the inner face of the rear wall to extend forwardly in a horizontal row to terminate close to the inner face of the front wall Illa of the casing. These containers may be tubular and of different diameter to receive coins C of various denominations, such as cents, nickels, dimes, quarters and half dollar pieces. The containers may communicate with coin storage receptacles (not shown) or have removable lids Ila at their rear ends for filling the same. Within said containers said coins may be caused to be continuously fed forwardly by spring l2, gravity or other suitable 5 means. The inner ends of each container are open and terminate into chutes [3 which lead into a common chute Na and thence into a collector or pay envelope E. The free spaces Ila between said open ends of the containers and the inner face of the wall [0a may be made equal to the thickness of a coin C fitting in the particular receptacle, so that as the coins are fed forwardly the foremost coin will be pressed against the wall I01: and thereby be frictionally 1;) suspended over the mouth of the corresponding chute l3, until forced down or discharged into the common chute and thence into the pay envelope E or other receptacle. Means for delivering or discharging the coins from the containers are provided in the. casing llJ adjacent each Rotatively mounted, in a horizontal row, and

extending over the outer face of the front wall I 00. of the casing H] are a plurality of rotary disk shaped dials IS, in number corresponding to those of said containers, one dial for each container. Each dial I5 is provided with a concentric row of circular holes I5a (Figure 2).

The number of holes on the different dials may vary according to the denominations of the coins in the different containers. Thus for cents,

nickels and dimes, each dial may have ten holes,

while the dial for quarters and half dollars may have a lesser number of holes, or for practical purposes, all dials may have an equal number of holes, and in that case not less than ten.

The circular distribution of the holes around the axis on each dial is such that starting from a certain zero or initial position of the dial they are equidistant relative to one another and as to the location of the hole first in the row counting in anti-clockwise direction from said zero position.

Slidably mounted in each hole I5a of each dial [5 is a push member such as a button [5, having a stem H which projects through a central circular opening [0b provided in the front wall Illa of the casing It. The rear end of said stem is provided 7 with an electric contact piece I8. When the button It is depressed the stem IT is adapted to engage a notch I90. provided in a disk is arranged inside the casing. Each notch Isa is provided with a contact point 25 adapted in cooperation with the contact piece It to close an electric circuit of an electric source (not shown), as will be hereinafter more fully described.

There are as many disks is inside the casing as there are dials I5, each mounted parallel to and in axial alignment with a dial. Each disk is is formed with an axially extendingsleeve Hib mounted on a spindle 2|, both sleeve I9'and arrives at and engages the rail 26 which releases spindle 2i projecting through the central hole Ilib and rotatively bearing the dial [5. The notches I9a in number and location correspond with those of the push members It. The spindles 2i extend in a horizontal row and are suitably rotatively supported within the casing. Each spindle 2i has fixed to it a ratchet wheel 22 with which cooperates a pawl 23 carried by each disk I9, whereby rotation of a spindle 2I will be transmitted to the corresponding disk I9 and through the stem ll of push member I6, while the latter engages a notch I 9a, to the corresponding dial I5.

Through a spring 24 each button or push member I6 is normally held in initial or outwardly projected position (Fig. 2), but when pushed inwardly against the tension of said spring 24, it is adapted, through suitable means, to be locked in engagement with a notch I90. of disk I9. In the present embodiment these means are shown to comprise a springcatch 25 which may be somewhat similar to an umbrella catch, and which is mounted in a longitudinal groove Ila of stem I1 and which normally tends to project outwardly but is held depressedby the wall at the inner end of hole I5a (Figure 2).

Arranged within the casing in the path of the inwardly projected stern I1 and at a point located the distance between two adjacent holes from the first hole, counted in anti-clockwise direction, are suitable means which atthe'instant a dial has been turned the extent determined by the particular push member, will bring the disk to a stop, releasing simultaneously thecatch 25 and permitting the push member to return under its spring into initial position simultaneously opening the electric circuit. In the present example these disk arresting means are shown to comprise a cam member, such as a cam rail 26, adapted to compress the spring catch 25 back into the groove I la releasing the push member Each disk I9 is provided with a circular series of pins 21 one adjacent each notch I9a adapted to project forwardly into the path of the cam I lb of the coin expelling means. When the disk is rotated the pins will be successively brought to act on the cam I ih, depressing the blade Ida and thereby delivering one or more coins.

The several spindles 2I of the diversedials bear clutches 28 adapted to couple said spindles to spindles 29 driven from an electric motor M (Figure 4) or the like through suitable gears 3a, 3!. The clutches 28 are adapted to be automatically actuated when the electric circuit is closed by the contacts I9, 26. This may be efiected through solenoids 32 whose armatures 3211 are operatively connected to the shiftable members of said clutches 23 by levers33 andsleeves-M slidably borne on the spindles 2|, springs (not the catch It in the aforedescribed manner, thereby opening the circuit and permitting the release of the clutch and thereby stopping the rotation of said dial.

Included in the motor operating electric circuit may be a hand switch (not shown), which will permit the operator to start the motor before operating the push members. The push buttons on each dial may be consectuively numbered from 1'on in anticlockwise direction.

The dials i5 are each actuated by springs 35 which tend to return the same into initial or zero position after each operation and are held in that position by stops 36.

The operation of this machine is as follows:

Suppose change is to be given in coins of one fifty cent piece, two quarters, seven dimes, six nickels and three pennies. The operator on starting the motor M by closing the hand switch, depresses successively the push buttons is of the respective dials corresponding to the number of coins desired, thus button numbered 1 on the fifty cent dial, button numbered 2 on dial for quarters, button numbered '7 on dial for dimes, button numbered 6 on dial for nickels and button numbered 3 on dial for pennies. By the depression of said buttons the electric circuits through the respective solenoids 32 will be closed and this will result in the coupling of the spindles 2| to spindles 29. The spindles 2I will be rotated, transmitting rotation to disks l9 and owing to engagement therewith of the push members It of the corresponding dials, the latter will be rotated in the same direction against the tension'of their springs 35. As the disks l9 rotate their pins 27 will successively actuate the coin expelling means by the cams I lb, causing the blades Idea to swing through the recesses Ila and force out as many coins from the containers as correspond to the number of the depressed button in the corresponding dials. These coins will all drop through chutes l3 into the common chute 13a and thence into the envelope E orother receptacle suspended from the casing or fixed thereto. When the push members I'l'cf the rotating dials I5 reach the cam rails 25, the spring catches 25 thereof which as shown in Figure 2a had been engaging the rear face of the wall ilia will become released, permitting the push members to return into initial position, simultaneously opening the electric circuits, and bringing the disks l9 toa full stop while the dials I5'will be caused to return to zero position by springs 35.

The dial principle as herein described may be advantageously employed for operation of an adding machine or any other register, thereby considerably simplifying the construction of such machine or register and rendering it less expensive.

It is, of course, clear that my invention is not limited to coins or'paper money, but may be effectively used in connection with machine for dispensing or discharging other articles and that various modifications other than those herein disclosed may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I, therefore, do not wish to restrict myself to the details shown and described.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine of the character described, a casing, a container therein holding a plurality of articles and having a discharge opening, movable means for discharging the articles, means for actuating said discharge means so as to selectively cause the automatic discharge of one or more individual articles from said container in a single cycle, a dial externally mounted on said casing rotatable in a certain direction from an inactive position and having a plurality of circularly arranged openings uniformly spaced from said inactive position in the direction opposite to the active rotation of said dial, driving means, means for transmitting rotation from said driving means to said dial, selective manually operable push elements in said openings for controlling said last named means, means on said dial whereby said discharge actuating means are operated upon rotation of said dial means tending to return said dial into inactive position, and stationery means in the circular path of said push member for limiting the active rotation of said dial from said initial position.

2. In a machine of the character described, according to claim 1, in which electric means are provided for operating said motion transmitting means and which are controlled by said manually operated elements.

3. In a machine of the character described, according to claim 1, in which are provided means for holding said movable control elements locked in active position and means for causing the automatic release of said elements.

4. In a machin of the character described, according to claim 1, in which said driving means include a driven spindle, a clutch coupling between said spindle and dial and electric means controlled from any one of said movable elements to operate said clutch coupling.

5. In a machine of the character described, a container for holding a plurality of coins and having a discharge opening, means for selectively discharging one or more coins from said container in a single cycle, a rotatable dial having a plurality of circularly arranged consecutively numbered selectors, each selector including a movable element, rotary means opposite said dial, a corresponding circular series of means on said rotary means capable of cooperating With any one of said movable elements to transmit rotation from said rotary means to said dial, means on said rotary means for operating said coin discharge means and a stationary stop for said dial in the path of said movable element.

6. In a machine according to claim 5, in which each selector includes a spring influenced push member, a catch thereon adapted to lock said push member in active position and in which said stop is arranged in the path of the actuated push member and also serves to release the latter.

7. In a machine according to claim 5, in which said stop is arranged in the path of said movable member, whereby the actuated movable member will on engaging said stop limit the rotation of the dial to a predetermined extent.

ALPHONS ADLER. 

